Sheriff Tim Swanson and his Chief Deputy Rick Perez graduated from Oakwood High School about 40 years ago, and since then, they’ve spent most of their time fighting crime together.

Called to investigate the murder of a young man killed Sept. 12, 1999 while allowing a couple to test-drive a car the man was selling, Swanson and Perez recalled staying on the case for days, without a break.

“We never went home for three days. But we got (the killer),” said Swanson.

Michael Dean Scott Jr. remains on death row, convicted of shooting the young man — 21-year-old Ryan Stoffer — six times in the back of the head, dumping his body in a wooded area and then stealing Stoffer’s car.

Swanson and Perez, who each easily recall the names involved in the case, joined the sheriff’s department in 1975, Swanson in February and Perez in October.

And on Jan. 6, Swanson and Perez retire — together.

Swanson leaves his office as sheriff and Perez as his right-hand man and chief deputy. Swanson is quick to point out that his “left-hand man,” Chief Deputy Michael McDonald, will be sworn in the next morning as the county’s new sheriff, a post Swanson has held since 1999 when his predecessor, Sheriff Bruce Umpleby, died.

“Surround yourself with capable, like-minded people who are dedicated to doing a good job. Set goals, meet those goals and give credit where credit is due, and you’ve done well,” Swanson says.

And it doesn’t hurt to start off knowing who those good people are.

LONGTIME FRIENDS

“We’ve worked a lot of cases together. We’ve had a lot of fun,” Perez said. “We came on (to the department) together, we’re going out together.”

Swanson added, “We’ll still see each other. He doesn’t live too far away. I’ve known him all my life, his brothers, his dad ... ”

Perez’ father, Robert L. Perez, had started as a full-time deputy in 1955, retiring in January 1981 as captain, third in charge under then-Sheriff George Papadopulos.

Rick Perez was at the sheriff’s department with his father when the grand opening was held in 1966.

As a child, he visited his father at the sheriff’s department then at Maple Avenue and Mahoning Road NE.

“I’ve been here my whole life,” he said. Recalling the poor condition of the old jail, he added, “Prisoners could escape from there just by pushing bricks out of the wall.”

Why did he stay in law enforcement for so long?

“I thought of it as a career, not just a job,” Perez said. He was promoted to sergeant, then lieutenant, captain, major and, in 2007, chief deputy, serving under five sheriffs. Besides Swanson, Perez has worked for Papadopulos, Robert C. Berens, J. Babe Stearn and Bruce Umpleby.

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WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS

While he looks forward to retiring from the sheriff’s department, Perez, 57, said he doesn’t plan to stop working.

“I’m going to pursue other interests,” he said. “I still want to work. I’m still looking into law enforcement and I’m looking around to see what’s out there. I’m keeping all options open. It depends on what I find.”

And while Perez said he has yet to plan his future, Swanson is “ready to go,” the sheriff said.

His plans?

“Nothing,” Swanson said. “I don’t want a job. If I wanted a job, I’d stay where I am — on top of the heap.”

He admitted the last few years haven’t been easy.

In 2011, Stark County commissioners cut the sheriff’s budget by 16 percent, forcing the layoff of 41 sheriff’s employees and reducing the number of jail beds available to house inmates by 200. It took the passage of a sales tax in November 2011 to restore the jail to capacity, which hasn’t quite happened yet.

The jail can hold 501 inmates. As of Friday morning, about 350 beds were full. Inmate capacity at the jail depends on the number of staff available to oversee operations. The sheriff’s department still is in the process of hiring people to return to full staffing, which officials hope will happen early in January.

“I’m tired of struggling, getting ahead and then having the floor start to fall out from under you and having to start all over again,” Swanson said.

But he enjoys sharing his knowledge of law enforcement and helping young people just getting started in law enforcement.

Swanson plans to continue teaching in the Law Enforcement Academy at Stark State College. He also plans to travel with his wife. Their son lives in Florida and their daughter lives in Georgia.

SERVING THE COUNTY

A Middlebranch-area native who will turn 60 in May, Swanson graduated from Oakwood in 1970, three years before Perez.

The sheriff recalled being within two weeks of graduating from college in 1972 when he received a draft notice. The Vietnam War was still going on.

Swanson joined a U.S. Army Reserve unit, the 350th Evacuation Hospital and left for Fort Dix, N.J. He trained as a truck driver and worked his way up to master sergeant at the Army Reserve’s 256th General Hospital. He never was shipped out to Vietnam.

During his service in the Army Reserve unit, he became a reserve deputy for the Stark County Sheriff’s Department in 1973. In February 1975, he was hired onto the sheriff’s department, working in the jail.

“When I started here, I was making $19,000 a year. Now it’s $92,000,” he said. “We used carbon paper and typewriters to type up our reports. Now we have moved into the 21st century where we have computers in the cars.”

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Swanson moved on to the radio room, transferring out nine months later to work in the road patrol.

He started the Young Explorers class in 1977, adding that McDonald was in his first class.

Swanson left the road in November 1980. He was promoted to sergeant.

When Berens took office as sheriff, Swanson went to work in the detective bureau.

Swanson was still in the army reserves when he was activated for service during Desert Storm in 1990. He recalled being two weeks shy of shipping out when his deployment was canceled.

He left the reserves in 1992 after 20 years of service.

At the sheriff’s department, Swanson remained in the detective bureau until 1994. During that time, he also worked in special law enforcement operations, such as with the FBI task force. He graduated from the FBI Academy in March 1994 and became Umpleby’s chief deputy and inspector.

When Umpleby died July 30, 1999 — at the same desk from which Swanson spoke — Swanson was appointed by commissioners to take over his post. And when Umpleby’s term ended, Swanson ran for sheriff — and won. He went on to successfully win the post in four more elections.